Battery chArger size

[MV Mystery]

Not a big fan of Dolphin. I had one crap out on a 70 footer I used to run at about 8 years old and the replacement lasted 3 years. I went with a Charles after that

I put two Promariners ProNautics on my boat. A 24/30 for the house bank and a 12/30 for the two mains and gen batteries. They re pretty compact so I mounted them under the helm, in the companionway above the forward ER doors. Out of heat and the panels can easily be read. Excuse the dust and visible wires in the pic

Hi Pascal

I’ve thought about relocating charger out of the heat of the engine room as you have done. However I’ve always been concerned that it would not be in a fire-extinguisher-protected space as is the engine room. In addition , since it’s active 24/7 whilst on shore power unattended- I kind of like the peace of mind that it’s near my fireboy! What are your thoughts?

[SKYCHENEY]

Hi Pascal

I’ve thought about relocating charger out of the heat of the engine room as you have done. However I’ve always been concerned that it would not be in a fire-extinguisher-protected space as is the engine room. In addition , since it’s active 24/7 whilst on shore power unattended- I kind of like the peace of mind that it’s near my fireboy! What are your thoughts?

And what would a surveyor think about that? Insurance surveyor might not like it.

[Boatsb]

Relax. The pro Mariners dont burn up before they just stop working very often.

But seriously the batteries are more of a concern for fire.

What about installing chargers in the ER as they are designed to be and add the remote panels or the remote battery monitors?

Certainly would be better than hanging charges on the walls of the companion way to the master suite.

My wife would kill me if I did something like that.

[Pascal]

I m not aware of any rules or standards mandating battery chargers to be installed in a fire extinguisher protected area. Maybe old ferro chargers were more of a fire risk... same with inverters. I ve seen many installed outside ERs.


Having chargers in air conditioned spaces makes more sense than having them on 120 deg ERs

[Dan Mapes]

Our inverter charger was installed outside the ER and no complaints from surveyor. BTW and I have not read all of the above, the efficiency or capability of the inverter will fall off with ambient temperature. Inverters located in ER's are not as capable so check the graphs.

I wonder if a charger shorting out would set off the extinguisher before things got out of hand anyway.

[Boatsb]

Professional installation practices would put the chargers close to the batteries to keep voltage drop low.

With inverter installation it's more important as ripple will cause issues too.

I install both systems outside the ER when possible but I've never seen either in a companion way.

I install a few a month. Many use remote panels so there is a quick visual reference in a place that's easy to see or as one customer said "hard to miss".

[MV Mystery]

Great Info. Never liked the charger in the Engine Room - the heat couldn't be good for its longevity. When I installed the Charles unit a few years back- I just put it back in the same spot as the older charger ( in the ER).
If this unit fails, I will relocate its replacement outside.
For my boat- I can move directly above the ER into the pilothouse using less than 5' more of cable.
(My Pilothouse air conditioner runs on timer to cool the boat daily. - which I'm thinking as I'm writing this, is probably more of a fire risk than the charger)

[Scarlett]

When I do surveys that is usually one of my recommendations to locate both batteries and chargers in a space not in the engine room but in a space with good ventilation, sometimes this is not practical for batteries, but for chargers or Inverters it can be done. John

[Pascal]

And if possible have the battery switches accessible from the outside so they can be shut off without opening the door in case of an electrical fire.

Since I redid the whole electrical on my 53, I have installed the house, generator and pump panel battery switches in the genny room but right behind the top companionway step. The step is hinged to allow quick access. For now I have the engine batt switches just inside the ER doors but will be adding a small access panel to disconnect without opening the doors.

[jim rosenthal]

My charger is installed in a locker near the engine room. I was more concerned about ventilation than keeping it in the ER. I installed a remote panel on the inside helm to keep an eye on it.